Description
This full 3-piece suite SOLD for $4,000 in 2024.
The listed price of $1,595 is for the 3-seater sofa with sled-base ONLY (there is also a matching pair of chairs available, priced SEPARATELY). Retail Price of a full suite like this NEW from Tessa (now defunct) in fabric- approx AU $12,000.
LOCATION- Geelong, South of Melbourne. Freight for just the sofa to Sydney would be ABOUT $280- this will give you a general idea of freight costs to your location.
This is an AUTHENTIC VINTAGE SUITE FROM THE 1970’s in quality vintage fabric. This is the ORIGINAL fabric from the 1970’s in EXCELLENT condition- this fabric is as tough as nails!
Background Info and Provenance
This is arguably one of the most sought-after lounge suites to ever come out of Australia. (Listed price is for just the 3-seater sofa only. The pair of chairs are priced SEPARATELY.) The Contour range by Grant Featherston is probably the most collectable in terms of dollar-value, but this design, the T21 swivel lounge chair, released by Tessa in the early 1970’s is, in my experience, the most asked-for chair. And I understand why so many people want them. The quality just jumps out at you but it’s the comfort that everyone wants. OMG … after sitting in a Tessa T21 chair you’ll instantly understand why so many people say they are the most comfortable chair ever made! We have sold vintage Tessa T21 lounge suites in leather for upwards of $8,000 and can show bank statements to prove this.
This Tessa T21 lounge suite was made in 1970’s- it has had no contact with pets or cigarette smoke. This ORIGINAL vintage fabric from the 70’s is sensational in QUALITY. As a result this suite is very close to being the same as when it left the Tessa factory nearly 50 years ago. This verifies the esteem and quality of what’s on offer.
After a 50-year stint in the Australian Marketplace, making ALL their furniture in AUSTRALIA, Tessa Furniture closed its doors in 2019. It’s a sorry state of affairs when an Australian business can no longer do what they do so well because of cheap imports destined to end up as landfill. And this is the very reason why Tessa eventually died. Their designs are so well-made that the second-hand market for Tessa pieces ended up becoming more sought-after than new Tessa Furniture. And who can blame people going straight to the second-hand market for designs such as these? The QUALITY of these chairs is so exceptional that second-hand Tessa chairs often still look basically new after 10, 20, 30, 40 even 50 years of use. In this listing you’re getting a suite that looks pretty close to new but for about one quarter the price of a new one.
These days, I believe the Tessa T21 swivel chair is THE best investment in the furniture marketplace. EVERYONE seems to want T21’s at the moment and because they are NO LONGER in production more and more people will hang onto theirs for a lifetime of enjoyment- therefore less and less will be coming onto the secondary market. Tessa T21 chairs retailed NEW in fabric for about $3,500 EACH just before Tessa went under- at our price (a bit more than about ONE THIRD retail) it should be obvious to anybody that the only way the value of these chairs can go, is up.
This fabric really suits this design- the lighter neutral tone pares back the boldness of the design and allows the timber armrests to take focus.
This Tessa T21 lounge suite is about 50 years old. After much of the world’s furniture ends up as landfill, this suite will be passed onto another user and eventually a whole new generation. Now that Tessa Furniture is no longer made anymore, I can’t see any reason why this design (made in AUSTRALIA) won’t slowly increase to the value they were selling for new (ie. $5,000 for the 3-seater in fabric). There’s no better way I can think of to invest in your home, the future of our environment and local community.
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